11- Sustainable Cities and Communities
Here are the actions taken by the Université de Montréal to preserve its land and its biodiversity.
Biodiversity
The Université de Montréal’s policy on sustainable development provides guidelines on integrating conservation and sustainability in its activities to reduce its ecological footprint.
Link to the full policy: https://secretariatgeneral.umontreal.ca/public/secretariatgeneral/documents/doc_officiels/reglements/administration/adm10_50-Politique_developpement_durable.pdf
The University co-signed the United Nations’ Nature Positive pledge with 10 other universities in Quebec. By joining this initiative with 116 other universities around the world, the University recognizes the role that education and research play in the fight against the decline of biodiversity and for ecological restoration.
For more information : https://durable.umontreal.ca/amenagement-biodiversite/biodiversite/engagement-envers-la-biodiversite/
Legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity and regions of conservation importance
Mount Royal was granted the provincial status of Historical and Natural Patrimonial Borough of Mount Royal in 2003. This status was recently revised to a Heritage Site. Since the University has been on this site well before it was recognized as a protected area, the entire campus is considered a protected area as well.
Endangered and vulnerable species on land owned or managed by the University by level of extinction risk
These flora species are currently threatened on campus: Carex dephalophora, Sanguinaria canadensis, Trillium garndiflorum, Juglans cinerea.
The Groupe de recherche et d’études en biostatistique et en environnement has recently conducted studies to inventory the status of species in the Mount Royal woodlands near campus.
Areas of important biodiversity on land owned or managed by the University
The oak grove on campus is considered a site of high ecological value because of the presence of carex cephalophora, which is listed as a vulnerable or threatened species by Quebec’s Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs.
Methodologies used to identify endangered and vulnerable species, and areas of important biodiversity
Three professors from the University did a study in 2005 in which they created an empirical tool to give an ecological value to different sections of the campus. Also, a variety of studies looked at the flora and fauna found on campus. Among other works, a meta-analysis was done by Alexandre Beaudoin, a biologist, for his master’s degree in sustainable development. The conclusions of those various studies were presented in 2012 and are still used as guidelines for on-campus actions. His study focused on the three areas: wildlife, flora and mushrooms.
Examples of these studies :
Plans and programs in place to protect species, habitats and ecosystems
In 2011, 13.42 hectares of land was donated to the City of Montreal for the creation of a public park. The objective is to protect the natural aspect of the land.
In 2009, a protection plan for Mount Royal was created by the City of Montreal, which the University has signed and still upholds its commitment.
Estimated percentage of areas of biodiversity importance on campus that are also protected areas : 100
For more information :
https://durable.umontreal.ca/amenagement-biodiversite/biodiversite/biodiversity-english/
durable.umontreal.ca/amenagement-biodiversite/biodiversite/projets-en-biodiversite/
Community Partnerships
The Université de Montréal’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (1st partnership)
The Darlington Ecological Corridor is one of the flagship projects of the University’s Unité de développement durable. This project combines all three of the preservation of biodiversity, sustainable development and the teaching mission of the University. The goal is to create an ecological corridor (through greening, urban agriculture, stormwater management and other ecological interventions) to link the University’s main campus to its new MIL campus. This corridor allows native flora and fauna to disperse throughout the Island of Montreal, improving the quality of life of its residents. The Unité de développement durable teamed up with the Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough to complete the project. This involved, among other things, the establishment of urban gardens, the demineralization of contaminated lands and the planting of trees.
The Project Through Time
The Darlington Ecological Corridor is a project that focuses on the ecological connectivity of green spaces in Montreal. The benefits are primarily to facilitate the expansion of wildlife in the urban fabric, but there are many other benefits. Among them, the project promotes greater citizen empowerment, provides food, develops habitats for bees, offers a pollination service, offers ecological alternatives to rainwater management and becomes an interesting playground for both students and the local community.
In 2014, the Unité de développement durable, its biodiversity advisor and a trainee in landscape architecture proposed a project to connect green spaces that links the University’s two campuses. First proposed as a project of ecological connectivity between green spaces, it quickly integrated the social sphere.
In fact, in 2015, a workshop organized by the Unité de développement durable and a human geography student took place with organizations that work on environment, conservation and development issues, as well as some residents who took part in discussions about the main outcomes for the community. This workshop was held at the summit of Mount Royal, a natural site where the University maintains its main campus. Also in 2015, a second student completed his internship in food sociology to better understand the profile of the surrounding community and its relationship with food. The main findings of this study still guide various interventions at the University. In partnership with the local borough, the University set up 40 giant pots to encourage residents to garden.
In 2016, a third student completed an internship at the University. This sustainable development student created a second consultation workshop, targeting mainly residents. These exchanges allowed the University to identify a priority intervention zone and develop relationships with the urban garden community. This is how the University’s gardening group came to develop a special project on composting. Until then, the Darlington project office acted as a facilitator between the community, the University and the borough. That same season, the Unité de développement durable secured external funding for the first time from the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. This money was directly reinvested in the community by inaugurating a nourishing forest in a rather moribund area. The planting of trees took place with a group of young people known as the Green Patrol, whose job was to bring concrete solutions concerning environmental matters. The project made it possible to provide a place for young people to learn about tree planting and to green a sector while opening the area to the local community.
In 2017, the Unité de développement durable got another funding amount for a development project of flowery meadows to provide a habitat for bees. This project took place in the field of the University’s new partners, the community gardens. Maintenance of this site always takes place during the summer. During the summer of 2019, the University targeted a sub-community more specifically. The University hosted a party in a park to discuss with the community and assess its specific needs. This approach made it possible to target certain projects and resulted in the creation of a dog park. The University repeated this model of celebratory consultation since then.
In 2018, an urban planning student, supervised by the Unité de développement durable, contributed to the project by proposing new areas of intervention, while proposing to link the project to other boroughs (Ville Mont-Royal and Outremont). The borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce offered funding to hire a horticulturist, a community animator, two urban planning students (specialized in active transportation and rainwater management), a project manager in social mobilization and a project coordinator. This funding was renewed in the summer of 2019.
During the summer of 2019, a student in socio-ecology and sustainable development developed a program of resident engagement through a calendar of activities (e.g., gardening, BBQs, gatherings for children, permaculture workshops). The benefits exceeded expectations. Residents joined the Darlington team as volunteers to develop new project areas and new activities (e.g., green alleys, cleaning chores, resident workshops, composting). Also, the University started a first development project with a Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux. It is the first project carried out by a sustainable development team from the healthcare system in the neighborhood.
Also, during the 2018–2019 academic year, the University hosted workshops in local elementary schools to create a new generation of gardeners who will maintain the gardens and to raise students’ awareness related to urban ecology issues.
In addition to these partnerships with local organizations, the University developed a partnership with École Polytechnique. In the fall of 2017 and 2018, the CIV-4940 course for graduating students in civil engineering offered students the opportunity to develop an integrated approach to stormwater management in the corridor that addressed infrastructure problems while providing water supply for local biodiversity. The best ideas were then selected by the instructor and were offered to the sustainable development office of the borough. This successful project became a continuing education workshop offered by École Polytechnique in the form of a massive open online course. This course is offered in English and to all Canadian engineers. This made it possible to integrate new notions of urban ecology into an engineering curriculum.
Also, each year since 2015, a professor from different disciplines takes over the project concept to make it a semester project. The University was able to work with students in urban planning, architecture, landscape architecture, communication and sustainable development. The University hopes to integrate students from other disciplines, such as geography and biology, in the near future.
FIRM project
The FIRM project consists of developing plots of land on public, institutional and private rights-of-way. Its main objective is to allow the community to discuss issues related to ecological and food planning. This programming, motivated by urban health milestones, aims to empower the community in terms of food supply while providing interfaces for cultural mediation.
For more information on the Darlington Ecological Corridor :
https://unpointcinq.ca/article-blogue/corridor-darlington-montreal/
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/recit-numerique/4151/environnement-vert-darlington-ecologie-sommet-terre
The University’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership)
Affiliated with the University, the Extension is a support centre made up of an interdisciplinary team, including educational (orthopedagogy) and health professionals (optometry and dentistry). Its goal is to support the development of children in precarious situations and to help their families by providing them with educational services and accessible healthcare.
This model offers several benefits that make the learning of everyone highly significant, such as collaboration between children and student trainees, interrelation between student trainees from different disciplines and complementarity of care and services.
The Extension advances research and knowledge related to community services and care. These are its three priorities:
1. Offer accessible services and care
2. Offer an innovative training facility for students
3. Offer a place to advance research
For more information: http://www.extension.umontreal.ca/
The University’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership)
Faced with an unprecedented ecological crisis, the University and Espace pour la vie joined forces to propose Chemins de Transition, a major project that engages the academic community, alongside other vital forces in society, in the debate on the climate transition in Quebec.
Since 2019, Chemins de transition mobilizes the knowledge from several disciplines and multiple actors to collectively identify the paths that have the potential to lead Quebec society to a resilient future.
This work is structured around three major challenges:
1. How do we feed more humans without depleting the Earth’s resources in the context of a changing climate?
2. How do we converge the digital transition and the ecological transition?
3. How do we live in Quebec in a sober and resilient way in the context of the ecological transition?
For more information: https://www.cheminsdetransition.org
The University’s STARS report card on community partnerships: https://reports.aashe.org/institutions/university-of-montreal-qc/report/2022-12-23/EN/public-engagement/EN-10/